Improved cotton-press



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UNTTED STATES PATENT OFFICE,

ALEXANDER JONES, OF NEW' ORLEANS, LOUISIANA.

IMPROVED COTTON-PRESS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 992?, dated October 26,1838.

fo all r11/"wm t may concern: I

Be it known that I, ALEXANDER JoNEs, of the city of New Orleans, in theState of Louisiana, have made certain Improvements in the Cotton-Press,or in a Press for the Pressing of Cotton and other Elastic Substances;and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and exactdescription thereof, reference being had to the drawings which accompanyand make a part of this speciiication.

My improved cotton-press consists of an upright screw of any desiredlength, with bearings permanently fixed at top and bottom, in which theends ofthe screw turn by means of a lever. Attached to the follower aretwo racks, in which work two pinion-wheels xed on a shaft which is movedor turned by a wheel acted upon by an endless rope. means of thiswheel-shaft, pinions, and racks the follower can be hoisted or loweredin a few minutes by hand, or other simple means. On top of the followerthere is an iron box, in which move female-screw-nut pieces that areforced up to embrace the female screw at any point desired, or drawnasunder again by means of levers, so as to admit of the lowering orraising the follower in the manner above described, and of thefree'passage ofthe screw as the follower is-moved up or down. When it isdesired to put the screw in action, the follower is lowered by the meansabove described as far as desired, and the two female nut-pieces areforced up to embrace the threads of the male screw, and confined thereby cross-.bars of iron resting across the outside ends ofthe femalenut-pieces, and across and inside ofupright projections of ron,whichconfine them in their position. When the desired pressure iscompletedwith the screw, the cross-hars, which have hinges at their ends, arethrown off, and the nut-pieces again drawn asunder by means of thelevers, and the follower again carried up by means of the wheel, racks,and pinions, as above mentioned, thus preparing the press in a fewminutes for fresh materials of cotton or other substances for pressure,and thus differs from any press hitherto known or used. The racks andpinions alone, or the screw alone, working in a solid female screw, havebothb/een used as presses, or in the pressing of cotton, Src.; but theuniting the action of the two in the saine Byy press by means of thedivided female-screw nuts, as above and hereinafter described, issubstantially my own invention, and not hitherto known or used.

In the accompanying drawings are shown front and end or side elevationsof my machine or press, with the other parts attached to the same whenin use.

The same letters refer to the same parts in each ligure.

Figurel is a front view of the press,in which at A are representedstrong beams, which may form part of the joist or be framed in, ifpreferred, in the gin-house;` B, the sleeper; C, the bed of the press;a, the follower, through which the screw S passes to the two-part nut ZZ, which will be more particularly described by Figs. 3 and 4. mm aretwo racks attached to the follower a, and movedby means of the pinions na, which are fixed on the same shaft, q, to which the grooved wheel o isattached; and if an endless rope be wound round the groove and hauled onfrom below the. racks m m will be raised, together with the'follower a,to which they are attached, provided the two part-nut Z Z is previouslyopened, so as to let the screw slide through the follower.`independently ofthe nut. There is a metallic head for the top of thescrew to work in, and a metallic step'for the lower end of the screw toworlrin. Att is shown a-lever, to the end of which a horse is applied toturn the screw after the follower has been lowered by the racks, as faras it can be, on the bales of cotton or other substances in the press,and the nut-pieces have been closed on the thread of the screw. Groovesare formed in the bed and follower to receive packingcords, as usual.

Fig. 2 is an elevation of the right-hand side of the press, in which thesame letters refer to the same parts as above.

- Fig. 3 is a plan of the two-part nut on alarger scale, representedopen, and in order to shut it, proceed as follows: S represents thescrew and Z Z the two halves of the nut,with pieces w fw forming part ofeach of them, and on these pieces at ww are two pins standing up, sothat the levers o c (which movev on a pivot at one end) may pass betweenthese pins. Press the levers toward each other, and the two halves ofthe nut will close round the thread of the screw by sliding on the bedof the nut. Then shut the bars x x forward, in the manner of a hinge,into the spaces inade to receive them on the edge of the bed of the nutin front, and the nut Will be rnily secured in its place. Reversing theprocess will, of course, open the nut.- The nuts are dovetailed into themetallic boxing or bedof the nuts, as shown at Fig. which bed or boxingis firmly bolted to the top of the follower.

u u r1', Fig. 1, represents the lral'ne of the press firmly braced andattached to the joist or frame-piece A in the gin-house.

Vhat I clainras iny invention, and Wish to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The method of combining,` and working the screw with the racks andpinions, wheel and shaft 'in the saine press by means of the two piecesof female-screw nuts, constructed on the plan and working substantiallyinthe manner and upon the principle herein set forth, whether applied tothe pressing of cotton, hay, or other substances, by means of which theexpedition of the operation is greatly increased.

ALEXANDER JONES.

Witnesses:

J AMES B. FRANCIS, GEORGE BROWNELL, Jr.

